Latest information on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

As of June 5, 2020

City of Daytona Beach

The City of Daytona Beach continues to closely monitor this situation. We will continue to update our website and social media pages with information regarding impacts to the Daytona Beach community as this situation evolves.

PHASE 2: Guidance▪ Individuals over 65 or with underlying medical conditions are strongly encouraged to avoid crowds and take measures to limit the risk of exposure to COVID-19.▪ All individuals that work in long-term care facilities should be tested for COVID-19 on a routine basis.▪ All persons in Florida are encouraged to avoid congregating in groups larger than 50.

PHASE 2: Restaurants, Bars, Pubs▪ Restaurants may allow bar-top seating with appropriate social distancing.▪ Bars and pubs may operate at 50 percent capacity inside and full capacity outside with appropriate social distancing. Patrons may only receive service if seated.

PHASE 2: Retail▪ Retail establishments may operate at full capacity with responsible social distancing and sanitization protocols.

PHASE 2: Gyms▪ Gyms may operate at full capacity with appropriate social distancing and frequent sanitization.

PHASE 2: Pari-Mutuel Facilities▪ Pari-mutuel facilities may submit a request to open to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation.▪ The request must include an endorsement from their county mayor or county administrator if there is no mayor.

PHASE 2: Personal Services Businesses▪ Personal services businesses, including but not limited to tattoo parlors, acupuncture establishments, tanning salons and massage establishments may operate while adhering to guidance from the Florida Department of Health.

*Broward, Dade and Palm Beach counties are not included in the Phase 2 Reopening.

The city waives any and all late payment fees against utility customers. Customers will not have their services discontinued or disconnected while the Local State of Emergency is in effect.

As of May 29

City Hall reopens Monday, June 1

Residents wanting to apply for a building permit, license or pay their utility bills may do so in-person starting Monday, June 1 starting at 8 a.m. for the Permits & Licensing department and 9 a.m. for the Utility Bill department.

Permits & Licensing and Utility Billing, located in City Hall at 301 S. Ridgewood Avenue in Daytona Beach, are taking walk-ins, while all other departments will be available by appointment only.Please call each department directly to schedule an appointment.

City Clerk: (386) 671-8023

City Manager: (386) 671-8010

Human Resources: (386) 671-8210

Leisure Services: (386) 671-8250

Planning: (386) 671-8120

Purchasing: (386) 671-8080

Redevelopment: (386) 671-8180

Customers are encouraged to continue to access city services remotely via email, phone, online and drop-box. For a list of more departments and their contact information, click on "City Online Services."

As of May 22, 2020

Almost all parks and pools reopen

As of today, the city has reopened almost all of its parks for passive outdoor recreation including the restrooms, walking trails, basketball courts and other outdoor amenities. The playgrounds at the parks remain closed. It is recommended children do not use the playground equipment because it is not being sanitized. Residents are expected to practice social distancing including remaining six feet from others and limiting groups to 10 people or less. The community centers and gyms, the splash pad and the Environmental Learning Center at Breakers Oceanfront Park, Bethune Point Park and its adjacent skate park, and Manatee Island and its dog park remain closed. For a list of the city’s parks, please visit https://bit.ly/36pyW4V.

Also, the city’s Campbell Aquatic Center, 400 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., and Cypress Aquatic Center, 981 George W. Engram Blvd., have reopened to the public. Visitors will have their temperature checked before being allowed into each facility and should adhere to social distancing guidelines, including being six feet apart. Cypress Aquatic Center is limited to 50 people occupancy and Campbell Aquatic Center is limited to 25 people occupancy. For more information, including hours, visit https://bit.ly/3bVzZLp.

County grants available for small businesses

Volusia County is accepting applications for a $10 million grant program aimed at helping small businesses recover financially from the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualifying businesses may be eligible to receive a one-time reopening grant. Businesses that have 25 employees or less may be eligible to receive $3000 or businesses that have between 26 and 50 employees may be eligible for $5,000. The grant is to help them recover from the negative financial consequences resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and relaunch their Volusia County business.

To qualify for the county grant program, businesses must certify that they suffered a financial impact of at least $3,000 due to COVID-19, and that the loss wasn’t reimbursed by insurance or some other governmental assistance program. Qualifying impacts can be anything from a loss of revenue due to an interruption in business to the cost of installing things like plexiglass dividers, UV sanitizing cabinets and hand sanitizing stations needed to resume normal business operations. With 12,000 small businesses in Volusia County, there’s enough money for approximately 3,300 of them to receive a county grant. Applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis, with the application posted on the county’s new Volusia Business Resources website, click on “County.”

For small businesses to qualify, they must be a physical business located in a commercial or industrial space, licensed to operate in Volusia County or the local city where they’re located if a license is required and were operational and actively conducting business in Volusia County on or before Dec. 1, 2019. Tax exempt businesses and businesses that are either a publicly traded company or a subsidiary of a publicly traded company don’t qualify for the program. A complete list of qualification criteria is listed on the county’s new Volusia Business Resources website, click on “County.”

Free COVID-19 testing available through Sunday

The free COVID-19 testing site at the city’s Midtown Community Center will continue through Sunday, May 24, while supplies last. The site, which opened Friday, May 15, has tested more than 1,000 people. Hours at the testing site are from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., while supplies last. The free nasal swab testing for the coronavirus is available for people over 18 years old, regardless of symptoms. A photo ID is required; however, city residency is not a requirement to be tested. Prescriptions and appointments are not needed to get a test, and is available for 200 people per day. Once samples are collected, they are sent to a commercial laboratory for testing. Results will be provided as soon as they are available, usually within seven days. The testing site was made possible through a partnership between the City of Daytona Beach, the Florida Division of Emergency Management, the Florida Department of Health and the Florida National Guard.Read Frequently Asked Questions about the testing site.

County offers mortgage assistance

Volusia County’s Community Assistance Division is accepting applications from homeowners who have been financially impacted by COVID-19. Facebook Social Network Mortgage assistance may be provided to eligible households for up to three months and is capped at $1,500 a month. The program includes assistance for eligible households for payment of late, current and, if they remain eligible, future payments. Applicants must have a current mortgage statement in their name and be able to document a loss of income as a direct result of COVID-19. Additionally, the dwelling must be in Volusia County, the mortgage must have been current as of March 13, and the household income must be at or below the area median income level. For more information about the assistance, visit the Community Assistance Division web page.

City offers assistance for renters

The City of Daytona Beach is expanding its COVID-19 Assistance Recovery Effort program, also known as CARE, by offering rental assistance to income-eligible residents. The rental assistance program is intended to provide financial relief to Daytona Beach residents impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and to help ensure stability for low-to-moderate income residents who have been furloughed, lost employment or have had work hours reduced. Appointments must be made to submit completed applications and provide documentation. Appointments can be made by calling Central Florida Community Development Corporation at (386) 226-1216 or Mid-Florida Housing Partnership Corporation at (386) 274-4441, ext. 301 and 304. Read the complete details for the assistance for renters.

As of May 6, 2020

Commissioners pass emergency resolution

At the May 5, 2020, City Commission meeting, commissioners passed a resolution that includes:

Extending the local state of emergency due to COVID-19 for an additional seven days ending at midnight May 12.

Authorizing outdoor seating at restaurants while following CDC guidelines and Governor DeSantis’ executive order of limiting occupancy to 25 percent of the building capacity.

The seating area must be located wholly or partially within a parking area.

A temporary physical barrier must be placed separating the outdoor seating area and pedestrian traffic.

No entertainment or amplified sound equipment allowed in the outdoor area.

The City Manager is allowed to issue licenses for outdoor seating on city sidewalks at no charge.

To promote social distancing, signatures for 2020 city municipal election petitions will not be required to be made in the presence of the candidate.

The city’s planning and redevelopment boards are authorized to conduct public meetings consistent with the Governor’s executive order.

The city waives any and all late payment fees against utility customers. Customers will not have their services discontinued or disconnected while the Local State of Emergency is in effect.

Residents encouraged to wear cloth face coverings

At the April 15 City Commission meeting, the commissioners discussed guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that recommends people voluntarily wear cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (e.g., grocery stores and pharmacies). Cloth face coverings fashioned from household items or made at home from common materials at low cost can be used as an additional, voluntary public health measure in addition to social distancing. For more information, visit www.coronavirus.gov. This cloth face covering information sheet provides details on how to create a face covering.

As of March 25, 2020

Daytona Beach CARE (COVID-19 Assistance Recovery Effort) Program

At the Tuesday, March 24, City Commission meeting, commissioners approved a multi-pronged incentive package aimed to provide immediate financial relief to Daytona Beach residents and business owners impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The projected value of the program, which offers three different incentives, is about $5.65 million.

The first method of financial assistance will be to fund a significant portion of utility bills next month using $4 million of General Fund reserves. Utility bills in April will be automatically adjusted or credited for the 22,858 billing accounts within the city of Daytona Beach. Specifically, a credit will be shown for the amount of water, sewer, recycling and public service tax. Not included in the credit will be fees associated with stormwater, solid waste and the landfill.

The next incentive will be to suspend fees for building permits for the next 90 days, beginning on March 25. (This does not include impact fee payments and doesn’t waive the need to apply for a permit.) All residential and commercial permits for projects will be included for anything from fences, roofs and swimming pools to construction of new homes and commercial buildings.

Waiving commercial tenants’ rent at city-owned facilities such as Joe’s Crab Shack at the Daytona Beach Pier, Jackie Robinson Ballpark, the Golf Club’s restaurant, tenants at the Marina Plaza, etc. for up to 90 days is the final incentive. City Manager Jim Chisholm will review options with each lessee.

The commissioners also voted and agreed (6 to 1) to draft a resolution to be sent to the Volusia County Council urging them to immediately closed the beaches in order to mitigate against the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to further protect the health and safety of the citizens of the City of Daytona Beach and Volusia County.

As of March 24, 2020

Customers encouraged to access city services online

As of 8 a.m. Tuesday, March 24, City Hall is closed until further notice. Please be assured that critical and essential city services will continue. Residents with non-essential city business are encouraged to utilize remote options for contacting and communicating with city staff. For questions, please leave a message on (386) 671-8400 and your call will be returned.

Florida Department of Health information

The Florida Department of Health has a dedicated web page that lists the latest update on cases, information and guidance regarding COVID-19 in Florida.

FDOH has also created a COVID-19 dashboard which maps cases by county. To view, go to their webpage.

For questions related to COVID-19 in Florida, please contact the Florida Department of Health’s COVID-19 Call Center by calling (866) 779-6121. The Call Center is available 24 hours a day. Inquiries may also be emailed to COVID-19@flhealth.gov.

Coronavirus

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Florida Department of Health have advised that COVID-19, also known as the Coronavirus, has been reported in Volusia County and Florida. It is important residents take precautions and stay informed.

It is important to protect yourself from COVID-19. Residents should:

Wash hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing.

If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.

Avoid close contact with people who are sick, and stay home when you are sick.